Day One - Saskatoon Ho

Gordon Howe Campground

Site #12 - $34 p/w, wifi, Temp 10C

Well, not the best start to a RV trip. Cold, wind and rain.

When we pulled over in Kindersley for lunch, we could hardly get the 5th wheel door open. The wind was SO strong. The old Dodge was guzzling fuel and we worried we wouldn't make it to the service station. Ron figures it was the worst gusts he'd driven in. And then came the rain. And the temperature dropped to 4C. Are we having fun yet?
However, a bowl of hot soup and a roast beef sandwich (on partially frozen bread) and it was back on the road.

We have just checked in to Ron's weekend home at the Gordon Howe Campground and I will soon be heading to Wilma's for our girlfriend weekend. And vodka.

Enjoy your weekend! Send heat if you have some.

Just so you know . . .

Camping Season has arrived. Tomorrow we will be bringing home the 5th wheel for loading.


We are headed to Saskatoon on Thurs. for my 'girlfriend weekend'. Ron will camp in the Gordie Howe Campground. After the weekend we will visit Larry and Phyllis at Jackfish Lake and then swing over to Edmonton / Drayton area to see the bros before heading to Vernon to visit Jeff and family. We have no definite timeline worked out and I'm not sure of our plans beyond this.

Anyway, I thought I would give you a heads up. We will stay in touch as we travel.

Home Again Home Again . . .

This morning we made the decision to head home. We had hoped to draw the camping out until after Thanksgiving, but I guess that won't happen now. The warm weather just wouldn't hang in there for us.

It was nice to have the sewer hookup plus the campground water was still turned on, so that made it easy to clean and empty the RV tanks in preparation for winterizing. Ron will add the antifreeze when we get home.

I am hoping we can enjoy some deck time and are able to sit around our propane firepit this weekend. Pretend camping!  It has been a long time since we have celebrated Thanksgiving at home.  So that is it for our 2011 camping season.

NOTE: It was 12C, cloudy and spitting rain when we left Cardston and when I wrote this final entry. Back home in Medicine Hat? Sunny and 21C.  I'm starting to think we should give up travelling in the spring and the fall!

Creston, BC... to Cardston, AB

Mountain Park Resort
Site #10 - $35.84, p/w, Internet, Temp 22C

Well, we've come full circle on this RV Trip. We spent last night in Creston/Erickson. At the Mountain Park with all those cool animal and bird wood carvings throughout the campground.

It was a beautiful evening and we sat out around the fire. Until we ran out of wood.  What?? We can buy some from the campground host??  No! never! We can not buy / pay money for firewood!

This morning it was cloudy, rainy and only 8C when we left Creston. The fall colours were much more prevalent than when we came through this area in September. Particularly in the Fernie / Sparwood area. It was all golden and beautiful! We changed our minds re our destination a few times on today's drive. We almost headed straight home.

But then the sun came out and the temp rose to 17C. And so, we turned south at Pincher Creek and we headed to Cardston, AB.
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Lee Creek Campground
Site #42 - $25, p/w/s, Internet LeeCr12543, Temp 17C

Cardston has a really nice town campground. So we 'checked in'. And, we managed to have another fire with wood left / salvaged from around the campground. Plus Ron raked up lots of leaves. 

On a neighboring lot there were all these piles of dead branches lined up along the chain link fence that separates the private property from the campground property. We figured they wouldn't mind us cleaning up and burning some of these old dead branches. We did manage to pull a couple branches through the 'links' in the fence. But then the friendly neighbor lady came out of the house with her 5 huge and not so friendly barking dogs. Apparently the branches are piled along the fence to keep the dogs back from the fence! "Some people are intimidated by the dogs" the lady says. Hahaha! We won't be stealing any more of THAT wood!!

Grand Forks to Creston... or ..??

We did enjoy our stay at Grand Forks. I'm kind of thinking that it doesn't take much to amuse us though. We always seem to enjoy the silliest little things on our travels. Small things small minds?? It has been interesting just to sit in this City Park campground and watch the locals go by. Some great entertainment there!

The bike trail here wasn't great. It looked good starting out, but for such a short distance. They really haven't developed or paved much of this Trans Canada trail at all. We biked what we could, but spent most of our time riding on the city streets. A bit of a disappointment.

On Sunday we opted for a truck tour. Ron headed north on a well paved highway winding up the mountain valley. I suggested we head over to Christina Lake. Ron claimed that particular highway wouldn't get us there. However, I turned on the GPS and "Lee" told us otherwise. We had a most enjoyable tour.

We missed a turn, but decided to continue further up the road. The fall colours and the mountain countryside were truly beautiful. We then returned to that missed turnoff. An hour later we were back on Hwy 3. At Grand Forks. About 500 metres down the road from where we had originally started our drive! We had such a good laugh. And indeed. A left turn down Hwy 3 and a further 20 km drive brought us to Christina Lake. Yup... it's those small things. Thanks for the laugh, Lee!

And Christina Lake? Nothing much has changed. If anything, it has gone further downhill. Developments have started and have been left unfinished. Businesses have closed plus there are "For Sale" signs everywhere. Actually this whole south area of BC seems to be suffering. It would appear that there is an excessive amount of real estate on the market right now. Tough times.

Today we continue east. Towards home. No hurries though. And where we spend the night will be a surprise. To all of us!

on to Grand Forks

Grand Forks Municipal Campground
Site #13 - $29, p/w/s, Internet poor, Temp 15C & cloudy

We quite enjoyed our lazy days at Osoyoos. We thought we might book another two nights for the "pay for 6 get 7th night free" special, but our site was booked for tomorrow night. And so we decided if we had to pack up and move, we may as well just keep going.

Through Greenwood and on to Grand Forks. One hour away. It is cloudy but pleasant. There is a section of the Trans Canada trail that passes through this area, so the bikes will be coming out.

I am happy to be back to the free unlimited internet and using my laptop rather than typing on the little iPod Touch keyboard! It was strange that the internet time limits ran out on the laptops and the newer iTouch, but the two older Touches remained connected.

All for now. Hope you are enjoying the weekend!

more from Osoyoos

Nk'Mip RV Resort
Site #C12 - $184/5=$36, p/w/s, cable, Internet 1 hr. free, Temp 9C on arrival

Turns out that is Osoyoos hasn't been too bad weatherwise after our first day. One can't complain when it's 22C+ and sunny. We would prefer a little less wind off the lake though.

We warmed up in the hot tub when we arrived and haven't been back. We have toured the town by truck and by bike. It never ceases to amaze us how this place continues to grow. There are always new developments springing up. It looks like this Nk' Mip RV Resort will almost double over the next year as the neighboring orchard has been levelled and will soon house another club house and more RV sites they say. Wow.

We ended up registering for five nights and still haven't made plans beyond that. Who said retirement was easy? ;)

I am not happy that we are limited to 1 hour of free Internet every 48 hours. I have managed to get around this somewhat by creating several different accounts on each of the 3 iPod Touches plus the two laptops we are traveling with. Ha! Where there is a will . . .

That is all for now. I must make the most of my hour!

Kelowna and on to ??

Orchard Valley RV
Site #3 - $35, p/w/s, cable, Internet, Temp 23C

We enjoyed our visit with Doug and family. Ryley is a real source of entertainment. A gadget guy. He was attaching motors and propellers to dinky toys and to his lego built planes. Plus he had some cool elastic shooter guns. One was even a repeater! I figured he should sell me his motorised bicycle that was powered by a leaf blower. How cool is that!



So we had a good visit. I did a load of laundry and the Italian lady serves great pasta.

We had a moment of panic when Ron realized his credit card was missing. Long story short, it was left at the last place he'd shopped in Vernon. Jeff called the business, picked up the card and even delivered it to us in Kelowna. He is working on the hospital in Kelowna, so that was perfect. Bonus? We had another visit as he stayed for a coffee and toast!

We had another big discussion about where to go. It is SO tough when the weather back home is better than what we are looking at here. We debated just heading back to AB. Anyway, we ended up choosing Osoyoos. If nothing else, we can soak in the hot tub. It was however the worst travel day we've had this trip. Wind, driving rain and COLD (10C). We would have stopped in Penticton, but most of the campgrounds are closed for the season. So we bucked the wind and we continued to Osoyoos. We are looking forward to that indoor hot tub.

Vernon & Kelowna

Big Chief RV Park
Site #3 - $35, p/w/s, cable, Temp 26C

Vernon. The weather was awesome! It was 26C when we arrived. We felt a little silly getting out of the truck in our long pants, sweatshirts and fleece vests.

We are trying out a different RV Park as we can't drink the water at the Beach campground by Jeff's. It's okay, although the sites are set up alternating so that you face your neighbor. I hate that. It gives the appearance of more privacy when you all back in the same way.

We headed to Jeff's. Owen was so happy to see his Grandma! lol



Actually I got lots of smiles as long as he was on Daddy's knee.

The next morning Grandma wasn't so scary. Owen and I shared lots of giggles. And he learned how to clap his hands.... yaaaaaaay.....!!!! So much fun.





Yesterday we hung out at the campsite and today we enjoyed the sun on Jeff's deck. Well, actually Christal and I enjoyed the sun. Ron and Jeff trimmed trees and put in some new sidewalk blocks. (I think they enjoyed themselves also.) I truly loved spending time with Owen and after that initial meet he seemed to enjoy his time with Grandma!

Tomorrow? It is on to Kelowna.

from Nakusp to Vernon it is

Village of Nakusp Campground
Site #4, p only, cell service, Temp 16C

As cool as it was when we arrived in Nakusp yesterday, the sun came out and it warmed up nicely. We enjoyed our bike ride along the lake and about town.

Plus, it was the first time we sat at the fire both before and AFTER supper. A beautiful evening.

Today after lunch we will head to Vernon. I am really looking forward to see our grandbaby. Who is 9 months now. And crawling! I'm a little sad that the next time we see him, he will probably be a toddler. (Growing up too fast!!)

On Sunday we will visit with Doug and family and then likely head to Osoyoos area. Have a great weekend everyone!